OPENING ROUND NCAA II PLAYOFF BOUT AT NO. 9 MISSOURI WESTERN AWAITS NO. 7 BULLDOGS

Thursday, November 15, 2012

Grant Schnobrich (67) and the Bulldogs hope there is still plenty of celebrating to be done in 2012

Credit: Joe Olivieri

The University of Minnesota Duluth's quest for a third NCAA Division II national championship in six seasons starts this Saturday (Nov. 17) when the seventh-ranked Bulldogs pay a visit to St. Joseph, Mo., for a first-round playoff clash with No. 9 Missouri Western State University. Opening kickoff is set for 12 p.m. at Spratt Stadium (8,000/artificial turf) on the Missouri Western State campus.

THE RECORDS: UMD, owners of a six-game winning streak, is 10-1 overall and placed second in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference standings with that same record. Missouri Western, which has won five straight, also sports a 10-1 mark in all games and claimed the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletic Association title by going 9-1.

HOW THEY RANK: Here is how UMD and Missouri Western stacked up in this week's American Football Coaches Association Division II and the D2Football.com polls as well as the last NCAA II Super Region 3 Rankings.

?? ?AFCA?? ?D2Football?? ?Region 3
UMD?? ?No. 7?? ?No. 5?? ?No. 6
MWSU?? ?No. 9?? ?No. 8?? ?No. 3
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THE BROADCAST: The Bulldogs-Griffons matchup will be carried live on 1490 The Fan (KQDS-AM) with Jeff Papas handling the play-by-play responsibilities The broadcast can also be heard on KQ 105.5 FM in Grand Rapids/Hibbing , KQ 106.7 FM in Ely/Virginia and at: www.fan1490.com.

Saturday's NCAA II playoff opener will be videostreamed as well and is available for free at: http://www.americaonesports.com /static/misswest.html

THE COACH: The numbers certainly speak for themselves. Two NCAA II national championships, five NSIC titles (including four in a row from 2008 to 2011), three perfect 11-0 regular seasons, six NCAA II playoff appearances, five NSIC North Division crowns, an even 100 victories and a .800 overall winning percentage. Bob Nielson has accomplished all this -- and much more -- in his 10 seasons of head coaching activity at UMD.

Last fall, Nielson directed his charges, which included 15 All-NSIC picks and a quartet of All-Americans, to an 11-3 overall record and a quarterfinal round berth (their fourth in as many years) in the NCAA II playoffs before bowing out to eventual national runnerup Wayne State University. In 2010, the Bulldogs did something no other NCAA II club had ever been able to do ? finish 15-0 for a second time. Along the way, UMD brought home the school?s second NCAA II title and third consecutive NSIC crown (a program first), amassing a 10-0 league mark for the third time in as many years. For his efforts, Nielson was bestowed with two of the most prestigious national coaching honors in Division II football ? the American Football Coaches Association DII Coach of the Year and the Liberty Mutual DII Coach of the Year awards ? in addition to being selected for that same honor by Don Hansen?s Football Gazette and the NSIC.

Nielson returned to the UMD sidelines in 2008 following a four-season hiatus and proceeded to oversee one of the most impressive one-year turnarounds in NCAA Division II history, taking a club which had gone 4-6 in 2007 and molding it into a national champion. Along the way, his Bulldogs rolled up a 15-0 overall mark (only the third NCAA II team to ever accomplish that feat), set or equaled 50 team and individual records, captured the NSIC title and turned out a whopping nine All-Americans. He followed that up two years ago by going 11-2 in all games and advancing to the quarterfinal round of the NCAA II playoffs.
Named the 2008 NCAA II Coach of the Year by American Football Monthly magazine, D2Football.com, and the Football Gazette, Nielson now owns a dazzling 100-25 overall record at UMD (that .800 winning percentage is far and away the best mark in the program?s storied 80-year existence) and is 170-58-1 (.744) in his 20 seasons of coaching at the collegiate level.

Nielson, a three-time NSIC Coach of the Year honoree (2010, 2008 and 2002) whose first tour of duty with the Bulldogs ran from 1999-2003, was officially appointed to his old post on Jan. 3, 2008. (He continues to also serve as UMD?s athletic director, a position he?s held since 2003-04). During his five previous years with the Bulldogs, Nielson helped marshal the UMD program to new heights. In 2002, for example, his Bulldogs posted their second unbeaten, untied regular season record at that time (11-0), advanced to the NCAA II playoffs for the first time ever and captured the NSIC championship. Nielson's resume also includes directing UMD to its inaugural post-season appearance (the 2001 Mineral Water Bowl in Excelsior Springs, Mo.) and the school's second greatest one-year turnaround to date (the Bulldogs went 7-4 in 2000 after managing a 3-8 mark the previous fall).

The runnerup for the 2002 American Football Monthly magazine NCAA II Coach of the Year award, Nielson, 53, joined the UMD staff in the spring of 1999 after he had guided the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire to a share of the 1998 Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference title (its first since 1983) and an initial berth in the NCAA III playoffs. He amassed a record of 22-11 in three years with the Blugolds, including a 10-3 mark in his farewell season when Wisconsin-Eau Claire notched a team standard for victories. Nielson, the Football Gazette?s 1998 Division III Coach of the Year, also was employed for five years as the head football coach at his alma mater, Wartburg College, where he strung together five successive non-losing seasons and attained a pair of back-to-back NCAA III playoff berths (1993 and 1994), and for two years at Ripon College (1989-90).

NIELSON BY THE NUMBERS
Record at UMD (Year)?? ?100-25 (10th)
Overall Coaching Record (Year)?? ?170-58-1 (20th)
Career NSIC Record?? ?78-15
Career NCAA II Playoff Record?? ?11-3
Career NCAA III Playoff Record?? ?3-3
Career Home Record (at UMD)?? ?53-8
Career Away Record (at UMD)?? ?47-17
vs. Missouri Western State?? ? 1-0

THE SERIES: The Bulldogs and Griffons have met only two times previously, the first of which took place on Sept. 20, 2007 in Duluth where then-20th ranked Western Missouri prevailed 45-27. UMD, ranked 17th at the time, returned the favor the following year (Sept 6) by walking out of Spratt Stadium with a 47-18 victory in tow on their way to a 15-0 season and a first-ever national championship.
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LAST WEEK: UMD rolled up a season-high 496 yards on the ground and ran on 66 of their 77 plays from scrimmage while turning back Northern State University 49-31 on a wet, and blustery day at James S. Malosky Stadium. Three different Bulldog eclipsed the 100-yard rushing mark on the afternoon, including quarterback Chase Vogler, who accounted for 224 yards (12 shy of the school single-game record) and five touchdowns on 22 carries. Rookie running back Logan Lauters finished with 149 rushing yards and had the other two touchdowns while his sophomore backfield mate, Austin Sikorski, added another 102 yards. Three touchdowns by Vogler, including a key nine-yard scamper with 14 seconds to go in the first half, and another score by Lauters helped stake UMD to a 28-14 lead heading into the third quarter. The Wolves pulled to within seven when they took the second half kickoff and marched 77 yards on eight plays, but Vogler answered for the Bulldogs by bolting 64 yards (a personal and 2012 UMD best) into the end zone. Northern State, which had won six of its previous seven games coming into the day, never got within 10 points of UMD the rest of the way.

Missouri Western capped off the first 10-win regular season in program history and captured the 2012 MIAA title outright by rallying for a 21-20 road triumph over Northwest Missouri State University Saturday. The Griffons,who were outgained in total offense (455-186) and mustered just nine total first downs the entire afternoon against the Bearcats, overcame a 17-point second-half deficit and sealed the win on quarterback Travis Partridge's two-yard touchdown run with 67 seconds to go in regulation.

THIS IS YOUR CAPTAIN SPEAKING: The Bulldogs' team captaincy responsibilities this fall are being shared by a quintet of seniors -- injured defensive end Joe Akey, free safety Cameron Harper, offensive guard Garth Heikkinen, tight end Ben Helmer and quarterback Chase Vogler.

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PLAYOFF PASTS: This marks the seventh year -- all since 2002 -- the Bulldogs have been invited to the NCAA II dance and they are 11-4 in their 15 lifetime playoff assignments. With the exception of a first-round loss at the University of North Dakota in 2005 (when UMD was under the direction of Kyle "Bubba" Schweigert), Bob Nielson has been at the Bulldog controls for all of those engagements. A complete listing of UMD's NCAA II playoff appearances is as follows:

Date?? ?Opponent?? ?Round?? ?UMD-OPP
11/23/02?? ?@NW Missouri State?? ?1st?? ?41-45
11/12/05?? ?@North Dakota?? ?1st?? ?12-23
11/22/08?? ?Chadron State?? ?2nd?? ?20-10
11/29/08?? ?@Grand Valley State?? ?Quarters?? ?19-13 2OT
12/6/08?? ?@California U. (Pa.)?? ?Semis?? ?45-7
12/13/08?? ?NW Missouri State?? ?Champ.?? ?21-14
11/21/09?? ?Nebraska-Kearney?? ?2nd?? ?42-7
11/28/09?? ?Grand Valley State?? ?Quarters?? ?10-24
11/27/10?? ?St. Cloud State?? ?2nd?? ?20-17 OT
12/4/10?? ?Augustana?? ?Quarters?? ?24-13
12/11/10?? ?NW Missouri State?? ?Semis?? ?17-13
12/18/10?? ?Delta State?? ?Champ.?? ?20-17
11/19/11?? ?Saginaw Valley State?? ?1st?? ?30-27 OT
11/26/11?? ?@CSU-Peublo?? ?2nd?? ?24-21
12/3/11?? ?Wayne State (Mich.)?? ?Quarters?? ?25-31

Home: 6-2 Road: 3-2 Neutral Site: 2-0

THESE 'DOGS HAD THEIR (NSIC) DAY: A pair of three-time selections -- senior free safety Cameron Harper and senior offensive guard Garth Heikkinen -- highlighted the list of 18 Bulldogs who received All-Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference North Division recognition for 2012. Accompanying that duo on the 27-member All-NSIC North Division first team were freshman placekicker Andrew Brees, senior offensive tackle Jake Bscherer, junior cornerback Kenny Chowa, sophomore nose tackle Buma Foncham, sophomore offensive guard Andrew Muer, junior inside linebacker Colby Ring and sophomore return specialist Aaron Roth. UMD also placed seven more players on the All-NSIC North Division second team -- senior tight end Ben Helmer, freshman running back Logan Lauters, junior center Grant Schnobrich, sophomore running back Austin Sikorski, junior defensive end Chris Vandervest (a 2011 first teammer), senior quarterback Chase Vogler, and sophomore wide out Zach Zweifel -- while honorable mention status was attained by junior offensive tackle Tom Olson and junior outside linebacker Nate Zuk.

Heikkinen was voted to the first team for the third straight year after receiving honorable mention honors as a redshirted freshman in 2009. Harper secured first team honors for the second time in three seasons as he, Chowa and Zweifel all were second team selections one year ago.

CUTTING TO THE CHASE: Senior Chase Vogler, who has established highs for both passing yards (2,112) and passing touchdowns (19) this fall,? currently ranks 17th in the country -- and second in the NSIC -- in passing efficiency (157.01). The Inver Grove Heights, Minn., native heads into the postseason situated in the No. 2 spot on UMD's all-time charts for total offense yardage (10,107) and the No. 3 position for pass yards (7,388). In 53 career appearances with the Bulldogs, Vogler has completed what currently stands as a school-record 63.1 percent of his throws while also running for more yards (2,719) than any field general in program history. In addition, he's a remarkable 46-5 as a starter (7-2 in the NCAA II playoffs) since assuming that role three years back as a first-year freshman. Those 46 victories are not only a UMD record, but they are the tops among all active NCAA II quarterbacks.

UMD CAREER TOTAL OFFENSE LEADERS
?? ?Name?? ?TP?? ?Yds?? ?TD
1.?? ?Ted Schlafke (2005-08)?? ?1,692?? ?11,591?? ?106
2.?? ?Chase Vogler (2009- )?? ?1,414?? ?10,107?? ?96
3.?? ?Ricky Fritz (2008-02)?? ?1,464?? ?9,926?? ?90

UMD CAREER PASSING LEADERS
?? ?Name?? ?Yds?? ?TD
1.?? ?Ted Schlafke (2005-08)?? ?11,591?? ?106
2.?? ?Ricky Fritz (2008-02)?? ?8,711?? ?90
3.?? ?Chase Vogler (2009- )?? ?7,388?? ?59

UMD CAREER RUSHING LEADERS
?? ?Name?? ?TP?? ?Yds?? ?Avg?? ?TD
1.?? ?Isaac Odim (2008-10)?? ?589?? ?4,242?? ?7.2?? ?72
2.?? ?Dave Rufledt (2001-04)?? ?648?? ?3,228?? ?5.1?? ?47
3.?? ?Brad Foss (2007-10)?? ?531?? ?3,011?? ?5.6?? ?30
4.?? ?Ted McKnight (1973-76)?? ?502?? ?2,957?? ?5.9?? ?47
5.?? ?Corey Veech (1982-86)?? ?606?? ?2,768?? ?4.6?? ?30
6.?? ?Chase Vogler (2009- )?? ?496?? ?2,719?? ?5.5?? ?37

HE KEEPS GOING, AND GOING, AND GOING: All-American senior offensive guard Garth Heikkinen will make his school-record 54th consecutive start this Saturday, having cracked the starting lineup in every outing since the start of the 2009 season. No active interior lineman in NCAA II football has more starts to his name than Heikkinen, UMD's first four-time All-NSIC North Division honoree.

THE GIFT OF GRAB: Wide receiver Zach Zweifel, who led the Bulldogs in pass receptions as a true freshman last season, paces UMD in that same department this fall with 39 catches (one more than his rookie-year total) for a team-leading 585 yards and five touchdowns (both career bests). Both he and rookie wide out Logan Lauters had caught at least one passes in 10 straight games before coming up empty in last Saturday's regular season finale with Northern State.

STATISTICALLY SPEAKING: UMD currently ranks among the NCAA II leaders in a host of statistical categories such as:

Category?? ?Rnk?? ?Avg
Third Down Conv. %?? ?2nd?? ?54.0
Kickoff Returns?? ?2nd?? ?26.6 ypr
Scoring Offense?? ?4th?? ?45.7 ppg
Sacks Allowed?? ?5th?? ?0.55 spg
Rushing Offense?? ?10th?? ?268.8 ypg
Rushing Defense?? ?13th?? ?99.4 ypg Passing Efficiency?? ?15th?? ?159.5

THE BIG 1-0-0: Last Saturday's 49-31 win over Northern State was Bob Nielson's 100th as a Bulldog head coach. In his 10 seasons of overseeing the UMD football program, Nielson has produced a 100-25 overall record, including a 62-6 mark during his second tour of duty. The legendary Jim Malosky is the only other UMD coach to reach the 100-win milestone, but he needed 164 games to do so.

THERE'S NOTHING HE CAN'T TACKLE: Third-year starting free safety Cameron Harper, who is one of three Bulldogs to take part in all 53 games over the past four seasons (quarterback Chase Vogler and offensive guard Garth Heikkinen are the two others), now stands fifth on UMD's all-time tackles list with 272 stops. Strong safety Jim Johnson (276 tackles between 2005-08) holds down the No. 4 slot while strong safety Kevin Westbrock (277, 1998-2001) is third. No slouch in the classroom either, Harper maintains a 3.53 cumulative grade point average as an accounting major and early this month was chosen to the 26-member 2012 Capital One Academic All-District 3 Division II team.

WHAT A RUSH: UMD continues to lead the NSIC in rushing with a 268.8 yards per game average. The Bulldogs, who as a team are averaging 5.6 yards a carry this fall, have produced at least one, 100-yard runner in six of their 11 games to date including:

Date?? ?Player (Opp)?? ?Att.?? ?Yards?? ?TD
Aug. 30?? ?Logan Lauters (SMSU)?? ?9?? ?104?? ?1
Sept. 8?? ?Austin Sikorski (WSU)?? ?16?? ?113?? ?2
Sept. 15?? ?Chase Vogler (CSP)?? ?10?? ?100?? ?2
Sept. 29?? ?Chase Vogler (SCSU)?? ?14?? ?120?? ?2
Oct. 13?? ?Austin Sikorski (MSU)?? ?9?? ?106?? ?1
Nov. 10?? ?Chase Vogler (NSU)?? ?22?? ?224?? ?5
Nov. 10?? ?Logan Lauters (NSU)?? ?11?? ?149?? ?2
Nov. 10?? ?Austin Sikorski (NSU)?? ?15?? ?102?? ?0

Chase Vogler now has six 100-yard rushing games to his collegiate credit while Austin Sikorski has five.

JUST WIN, BABY: Since the opening of the 2008 season, no NCAA II outfit in the country has amassed more victories (62) or compiled a better winning percentage (.918 off a 62-6 record) than UMD. Northwest Missouri State is next in each of those two categories (59-10, .855).

A SENIOR MOMENT: Eleven Bulldogs seniors are embarking on their final postseason activity as collegians. That group includes defensive end Joe Akey, offensive tackle Jake Bscherer, free safety Cameron Harper, offensive guard Garth Heikkinen, tight end Ben Helmer, strong safety Jordan Hoesktra, linebacker Nick Lloyd, quarterback Jon Lynch, linebacker Blake Rogers, wide receiver Collin Stinogel and quarterback Chase Vogler. Since this class first arrived on campus back in 2008, they have been part of the most prolific run in the 80-year history of Bulldog football. That run has included a 62-6 overall record, two NCAA Division II national championships, a record four straight NSIC titles (2008-11), two separate 17-game winning streaks, and five NCAA II playoff appearances.

MAKING A POINT: In terms of per-game average, the Bulldogs are scoring at a record-breaking clip thus far in 2012. Bob Nielson-coached teams occupy five of the top six spots in the UMD's single-season points race:

Year?? ?Games?? ?Points?? ??? ?PPG
2012?? ?11?? ?503?? ?45.73
2002?? ?12?? ?539?? ?44.92
2008?? ?15?? ?613?? ?40.86
2010?? ?15?? ?595?? ?39.66
1961?? ?9?? ?354?? ?39.33
2009?? ?13?? ?498?? ?38.30
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THE DRIVE FOR FIVE IS NO MORE: The 2012 Bulldogs came within just one game of becoming the second school ever -- and first in nearly 60 years -- to lay claim to five consecutive NSIC crowns. UMD, the NSIC's first four-peat champions since 1978 (the University of Minnesota-Morris), was looking to join St. Cloud State (1951-55) in that exclusive group of five-time titleholders.

BULLDOG BITS: The Bulldogs will head into the 2013 season toting a 40-game NSIC home winning streak, having not lost a league engagement at Malosky Stadium since succumbing 37-27 to Concordia University-St. Paul on Oct. 7, 2000. Throw in NCAA II playoff and non-conference games and UMD is an even more impressive 45-0 overall against NSIC schools in Duluth during that stretch ... Redshirted freshman cornerback Ty Fischer made his first collegiate start last Saturday afternoon against Northern State and wound up having a hand in three total tackles ... The three kickoffs the Bulldogs have returned for touchdown this fall (two by sophomore Aaron Roth and one by redshirted freshman Justin Fowlkes) equal a team single-season (the 2009 and 2001 cubs share that mark). Roth, who has all 14 of UMD's punt returns in 2012, is the first Bulldog to bring two kickoffs back for scores in 12 years (Cash Langeness in 2000) .... Since suffering a 51-49 walkoff loss at St. Cloud State last month, the Bulldogs have proceeded to post six wins in a row while outscoring the opposition 259-79. ... UMD has scored at least five touchdowns in 10 of its 11 games thus far (the exception was four against Bemidji State University last month) ... Cornerback Darion Fletcher, who has been called on to start three times this season, is the lone true UMD freshman to receive playing time in 2012 ... The 2012 season marks the first time in the 80-year history of UMD football that the entire regular season schedule consisted of conference games only ... Junior Alex Brown has been called on to punt only five times the last three games, but had two of its kicks blocked (once which was returned 32 yards for a touchdown) in last Saturday's 49-31 win over Northern State ...? With the exception of two occasions (Sept. 19, 2011 and Oct. 31, 2011), UMD has cracked the Top 10 in every AFCA II poll since Sept. 29, 2008. It did maintain the top spot in that ranking from Nov. 2, 2010 until after its 7-0 loss to Wayne State College (Sept. 17), when it tumbled to No. 11 ... UMD is now 177-53-4 (a .765 winning percentage) all-time at Malosky Stadium, its home since the 1966 season, and crafted a 20-1 mark there over the past three years.

TO THE VICTORS: This Saturday's winner will move on to the second round of the NCAA II playoffs (Super Region 3 semifinals) on Nov. 24 to face unbeaten and No. 2-seeded Henderson State University (Ark.) on the road. No. 1 seed Minnesota State University-Mankato will host either Harding University (No. 5) or Northwest Missouri State (No. 4) that same afternoon. Those two clubs will square off this Saturday in Maryville, Mo.

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Source: http://www.umdbulldogs.com/news.php?id=6947

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